New York City, or the ‘Big Apple’, is a city with skyscrapers, densely populated areas and some of the iconic landmarks. In addition to this, the city is a commercial and cultural centre of the United States. Unfortunately, it is on the verge of sinking! Read further to know the reason behind this horrifying news.
New York City Is Sinking!
When we think of New York City, the first thing that comes to our mind is tall skyscrapers. Unfortunately, this is turning out to be the reason for its doom. According to a report by the New York Post, the city houses more than a million skyscrapers. And its weight is the reason why New York City is on the verge of sinking!
In a study that was published in the journal Earth’s Future, scientists calculated the strain that New York’s buildings put on the clay, sand, and slit foundation under which the city is built. According to their findings, New York is generally sinking between one and two millimetres annually. Localities like Lower Manhattan are sinking more quickly.
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Key Points Of The Research
According to the research, flood risk poses serious problems for New York. Along the Atlantic coast of North America, the hazard of sea level rise is three to four times greater than the global average. New York City’s 8.4 million densely populated residents are at various levels of risk from flooding. Building foundations exposed to salt water on a regular basis may corrode the steel reinforcing them and chemically deteriorate the concrete, weakening the structure. The research report relates the sinking phenomena to the serious hazards from coastal floods and hurricanes.
According to reports, coastal cities are facing a risk of sinking in the near future. And Mumbai, the financial capital of India, is one of them! Although some regions are predisposed to a certain level of subsistence, human activities like groundwater pumping, oil and gas drilling, and quick development are speeding it up in many cities. Some cities are already experiencing coastal flooding as a result of subsidence and sea level rise.
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What are your thoughts about the flooding and sinking of coastal cities?
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